Where does “ice well” come from?
ice well (English) comes from English well, from Middle English wellen, from Old English weallan, from Proto-Germanic wallaną, from Proto-Indo-European wēlH-, from Proto-Indo-European welH- — to turn, to wind.
ice well (English): A well (hole in the ground) in which ice was stored in the era of the ice trade and iceboxes (18th to mid-20th centuries); often with some degree of construction over it, similar to that used with icehouses, root cellars, and springhouses
Definitions
- A well (hole in the ground) in which ice was stored in the era of the ice trade and iceboxes (18th to mid-20th centuries); often with some degree of construction over it, similar to that used with icehouses, root cellars, and springhouses
Ancestry of “ice well”, step by step
ice well traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English well
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | well | Accurately, competently, satisfactorily;... |
| 2 | Middle English | wellen | to boil, to bubble |
| 3 | Old English | weallan | to well |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | wallaną | to well up, spring out, bubble forth |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | wēlH- | to roll, to undulate |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | welH- | to turn, to wind |